House GOP targets 5 northeast Democrats potentially vulnerable in 2022 midterms

close

Video

Fox News Flash top headlines for June 2

Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com.

EXCLUSIVE: As part of its push to regain the House of Representatives majority in the 2022 midterm elections, the congressional GOP's reelection arm is launching a new ad blitz targeting five northeast House Democrats who may likely face challenging reelections next year.

The digital, radio and billboard campaign by the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC), which was shared first with Fox News on Wednesday, targets Reps. Matt Cartwright of Pennsylvania (PA-08), Jared Golden of Maine (ME-02), Jahana Hayes of Connecticut (CT-05), Tom Malinowski of New Jersey (NJ-07) and Chris Pappas of New Hampshire (NH-01).

HOUSE DEMOCRAT AND REPUBLICAN REELECTION ARMS SET APRIL FUNDRAISING RECORDS

"This is a warning to every vulnerable Democrat in the Northeast: Their socialist agenda will cost them their jobs in 2022," NRCC chairman Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn., argued. "House Republicans are on offense throughout the country and will ensure voters have a clear understanding of Democrats’ damaging socialist policies."

The narrator in digital and radio ads in Maine charges that "Maine lobstermen trusted Jared Golden, but Jarden Golden sold them out. Golden is supported by the same radical environmentalists who back building wind turbines that threaten Maine’s lobster industry."

The announcer then urges constituents to "tell Jared Golden to stand with Maine lobstermen, not special interests."

Golden's congressional district – the largest east of the Mississippi River – contains a number of small cities but is mostly rural. Former President Trump won the district in 2016 – and captured it again by seven points in his 2020 reelection defeat. 

Golden, a Marine veteran who deployed to both Afghanistan and Iraq, narrowly won the district in 2018 as the Democrats recaptured the House majority for the first time in eight years in a wave election. He became the first member of Congress elected by ranked-choice voting. The congressman captured a second term last November by seven points, outperforming now-President Biden in the district by nearly 30,000 votes.

HOUSE DEMS 2020 AUTOPSY BLAMES BAD POLLING, GOP ATTACKS FOR ELECTION SETBACKS

The digital ad and an accompanying billboard take aim a Malinowski over recent reports claiming that during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic, he bought and sold as much as $1 million in stock in companies involved in the COVID response.

"As our economy collapsed from the coronavirus, Tom Malinowski got rich," the narrator in the ad claims. "Malinowski broke the law and tried to hide it."

"Tell Tom Malinowski stop putting personal profits ahead of New Jersey voters and businesses," the announcer urges.

Malinowski, responding to the reports, has said there’s no allegation of trading on insider information or abuse by his office and argues the stories are based on a late filing.

The congressman won election to the House in 2018 by five points but narrowly earned a second term last November with a one-point victory.

HOUSE GOP REELECTION CHAIR SPOTLIGHTS SURGE IN 2022 REPUBLICAN CANDIDATES

A radio commercial takes aim at Cartwright over soaring gas prices.

"Even though the price of gas is now over $3 a gallon, Matt Cartwright thinks we should pay more. He supported a bill to increase the gas tax by as much as 15 cents a gallon," the anchor emphasizes. 

The digital spot targeting Hayes charges that "Hayes and [House Speaker Nancy] Pelosi want to pass the largest tax hikes since 1942."

Hayes saw her margin of victory edge down from 12 points in 2018 to nine points last year.

And the billboard taking aim at Pappas ties the second-term congressman to the House speaker, arguing "Chris Pappas + Nancy Pelosi = Higher Taxes."

Pappas won reelection last year by just five points in a battleground district that will likely see an infusion of GOP voters after once-in-a-decade redistricting, which the Republicans control in New Hampshire.

The NRCC tells Fox News it will spend five figures to run the campaign for a week, starting Wednesday.

Responding to the NRCC’s new ad campaign, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) pointed to Tuesday’s resounding victory by the Democrats in a special election for a solidly blue House seat in New Mexico.

DCCC spokesman James Singer told Fox News that "it’s no surprise the NRCC wants to change the subject after their drubbing last night in New Mexico. They can waste all the money they want on these partisan attacks, but the American people see Democrats leading America’s comeback as Republicans give their caucus over to radical conspiracy theorists like Marjorie Taylor Greene."

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

While Republicans lost the White House and their Senate majority in the 2020 contests, in the battle for the House they defied expectations and took a big bite out of the Democrats’ majority in November’s elections and only need a net gain of five seats in 2022 to regain control of the chamber.

House Republicans have history on their side as they aim to regain the chamber. The party that controls the White House, which is currently the Democrats, on average loses roughly 25 House seats in the midterm elections.